Corporate culture
iGuzzini illuminazione UK: a new Headquarters for our Lighting partners Guildford, Great Britain
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The architect Pier Luigi Copat, in conjunction with the firm of architects Lewis & Hockey, based in Guildford, designed the new “iGuzzini Partners Assistance� for the United Kingdom. The new Headquarters is in Peasmarsh, near Guildford, in Surrey. The scheme is built on the site of an old timber yard in Peasmarsh, near Guildford, adjacent to the River Wey. The project consists of two structures: a three storey office building and a connecting low-rise warehouse. The different heights create a sloping scale which minimises impact on nearby housing, and distinguishes the differing uses of the two spaces. The office building is an asymmetrical, U-shaped steel-framed structure developed around a central three-floor story, glazed atrium. At the back of the building, the ground floor is sunk under a grass slope that anchors the building to the surrounding landscape and its
environment. The ground floor meeting rooms located in this part of the building are lit naturally by skylights set in the raised landscape. The design of the office building establishes a clear hierarchy between the ground floor and the upper two floors. The ground floor, which will be used as a lighting showroom and reception, is finished in slate grey stucco render, and set back. The overhanging upper two floors used for administration, are both glazed and with light grey cladding panels, reminiscent in finish to raw cast aluminium, one of the signature materials of iGuzzini luminaires. The offices are connected vertically by a customproduced glass staircase with a light acid etched inner layer which gives a greater brightness than standard opaque or sandblasted glass. The warehouse is parallel to the office and connected by a raised walkway at first floor
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